The Art of Flight
by MaddyLovesL
Summary: Neji stood in the dock. Accused of the murder of Ten-Ten. A rival in love. He had the motive the opportunity. Yet, inside the hostile courtroom one man was determined to set him free. He would make sure that Neji did not swing from the gallows. ShikaNeji


Discliamer: I do not own Naruto... Or things owuld be a loooot different.

_Caged Bird._

_A free bird leaps_

_On the back of the wind_

_And floats downstream_

_Till the current ends_

_And dips his wings_

_In the orange sun rays_

_And dares to claim the sky._

_But a bird that stalks_

_Down his narrow cage_

_Can seldom see through_

_His bars of rage_

_His wings are clipped and_

_His feet are tied_

_So he opens his throat to sing. _

_The free bird thinks of another breeze_

_And the trade winds soft through the sighing trees_

_And the fat worms waiting on a dawn-bright lawn_

_And he names the sky his own._

_But a cages bird stands on the grave of dreams_

_His shadow shouts on a nightmare scream_

_His wings are clipped and his feet are tied_

_So he opens his throat to sing._

_The caged bird sings_

_With a fearful trill_

_Of things unknown_

_But longed for still_

_And his tune is heard_

_On the distant hill_

_For the caged bird _

_Sings of freedom._

_Maya Angelou_

*

"Hyuuga Neji. You, on the twenty-third of July last, have been accused of murdering one Masumi Ten-Ten. Are you guilty, or not guilty?"

There was a long silence. A few faces turned coldly towards the figure in the dock. It was, one might say a very handsome figure, if not slightly feminine in its features. Dark, very dark long brown hair cascaded down its back. Its face was pleasing to look at, a charming face, something most people who knew him, would say he inherited from his mother. His eyes though, were the most striking. He could have been blind.

"Not guilty."

Hushed, spiteful whispers, from those who sought to do him harm, swept across the court room.

One judge stood.

"Alright. Now. let us go through this from the very beginning shall we?"

'The beginning? How long ago that seemed.'

Words drifted through Neji's foggy mind. Empty house... Opportunity... Motif... Jealous... Made some lunch.... Sandwiches... Nurse made tea... In love with his best friend... Disgusting creature. One of _those_.

'Oh yes... I was in love with him. Naruto. How foolish of me. But he was always so kind. His face. Large understanding eyes. A firm jaw line. So kind... Always sweet.' Even now, as Neji stood accused of murdering Naruto's beloved, he did not bear a grudge.

The beginning... That day.

The day, as Neji and Naruto lay undisturbed in their small university lodgings, Neji had received an anonymous letter through the post.

It was never pleasant, receiving such things. There was a slightly bitter and cruel manner about the way they were written, always the crude spellings, the untidy scrawl, or in Neji's case, the carefully cut out newspaper letters.

Naruto had told him to burn it, not to pay any attention. Of course, Neji couldn't.

"Naruto, I'm sure this means something, and Kurenai is a good family friend. Please, Naruto. Could you perhaps just come down to the country with me, just for a little while, you have been talking about it after all."

Neji hadn't wanted to seem that desperate. But Naruto always did ruin things.

"Oh... Alright then, as long as you'll let me read the letter, just in case."

Neji had handed it over to him, and listened again as the letter was read out loud.

" 'There is a new girl. Kurenai has taken a great shine to the girl. She is going to cut you out. She will leave you. You will be completely cut out. You and your family. The new girl is a suck-up. The new girl is the sheep with the fleece as white as snow, as you might say. Do not be fooled. Kurenai is also old now remember. She has had another stroke, and is not long for this world I should think. You will be cut out from her will at this rate. Where will this leave Hyuuga Hinata and he fatherless baby?' "

Naruto had paused for a few moments. This was, indeed, very unsophisticated and obviously from someone who was extremely simple minded.

"Kurenai, really is ill then? I asked you to tell me, Neji you moron."

Neji inwardly recoiled.

"Oh don't give me that look, like a puppy who's been kicked, I was just concerned."

That was Naruto, always quick to forgive. A weakness one might say.

Neji cautiously asked, "How about tomorrow afternoon then? If it's not too soon? It's just, this letter, no matter how crude, it bothers me a bit."

"Only natural. Tomorrow's fine. On condition you buy me Ramen for a week."

Neji resentfully agreed.

*

Neji could remember clearly, the first time he ever saw that house. If you could call it a house. It was more along the lines of a very big mansion. He had first seen it as a child of four. It had been a very dark, bitterly cold snowy night. The flakes of snow had drifted slowly down. Neji, then had felt as though he was in a snow dome.

Trapped.

But, it had been fine. Because it had been almost like a perfect world. Sealed off from the outside, where people wanted to hurt you, wanted to make you cry. It had been his perfect bubble world.

He remembered making a snowman with Hinata.

Kurenai had laughed, content.

Neji had always figured the only reason Kurenai would leave any money to either of them, was because, firstly, she had no living relatives and secondly, the two of them had made her happy, happy when she lay in her bed, taken with a fever, happy when she was wheeled outside, and her body lay like a rag doll helpless. Until Hinata had taken it upon herself to buy her a pair of walking sticks. It was only Kurenai's right side which was dreadfully bad, and damaged beyond repair. As long as one side still worked. Kurenai didn't mind.

Now, driving up towards it with Naruto, he couldn't help but feel that feeling which one sometimes has when one misses a step in a dark.

A horrible plummeting sensation.

As they neared the house, Neji felt his bubble world seal up, keeping them safe here, with the enormous gardens, that maze which Neji had once become lost in and stayed there for a whole night, the fountain which Hanabi had fallen in to at least twice, and the well which was said to hide dead bodies. Or at least, Neji, Hinata and Hanabi had liked to think so.

"I'll take the suit cases Neji, if that's alright with you."

"It's fine, thanks."

Neji slowly got out of the car. He made his way up the stone steps towards the front door.

The hall, which harboured long-forgotten fur coats, muddy boots, and threadbare carpets was a lot colder than it usually was. Or once was.

Neji restrained the faintest of shivers.

A loud banging and clattering, nearly made him jump.

'Oh just, that old lift. How stupid of me.'

Out of the lift, there appeared a nurse, Neji could only tell by the white cap that she wore. How unbecoming it was too.

"Hello sir. Uhh..." She appeared uncertain of who he was.

"I'm an old family friend. I received a letter from Kurenai-san-" It was only a tiny lie, "asking me to come down here. I'm Hyuuga Neji."

The dark eyed girl's face cleared.

Immediately her manner changed from confused, to one of welcoming.

"I'm one of Kurenai's nurses, Shizune. Pleased to meet you." She bowed deeply, her short, shiney black hair falling to hide her face.

Neji returned the gesture with an inclination of his head.

Banging and cursing warned Neji of Naruto's arrival.

Shizune's expression was disapproving as a loud 'shit' followed by a bang was heard. Neji had the grace to look ahshamed.

As Naruto finally made himself visible, Neji quickly introduced the two.

Shizune's expression remained critical.

"I was wondering, is it alright if we leave the cases here, I'm sure uhh.. What's-his-name, the butler will take them up. I know it's not your job, but is it possible for you to show us to Kurenai's room?"

Shizune immediately nodded her hair.

"Right this way."

She led them into the elevator, which clattered and banged horribly, the noise reverberating off the walls, to make some sort of ghostly echoes.

Along the corridor, a left turn, along another corridor, all the doors exactly the same, and all the way down until the came to one very big door set at the end of the corridor. The oak panelling was shiny with what appeared to be, very recently applied varnish.

Shizune knocked gently on the door.

A weak 'enter' was heard from within.

Neji and Naruto entered carefully, as if there were a sleeping baby in the room.

The room was just as Neji had remembered, apart from the additions of a few medicinal bottles, an inhaler, and a lot more photos. He recognized some of them. One of Hinata proudly holding up a small kitten. Hanabi gazing at a small butterfly which had alighted upon her knee. Quite how somebody had managed to take that photo nobody knew. There were quite a few of Hanabi and Hinata together, linking arms, or bearing daisy chains galore.

There was also quite a few of Neji, but none that Neji admired particularly.

Naruto though, had always said that he admired the one of Neji fast asleep on a vast field of poppies.

Quite often Neji thought that Naruto was taking the mickey.

So wrapped up in his own thoughts was Neji, that he had failed to notice a girl with very thick, very shining dark hair in two neat buns, with a very pretty pale pearly pink dress which synched in her waist, sitting calmly by the bed and holding open a book on her lap.

Naruto seemed mesmerized by her.

Neji fought the urge to roll his eyes.

"Anything in a skirt..." he muttered.

Naruto's eyes were vacant, as though he had just popped out of his mind.

A rough elbow brought him crashing back to the earth unpleasantly.

Neji had pointy elbows. In Naruto's own humble opinion, he sharpened them.

"Neji! Naruto! It's so good of you to visit. I haven't had the pleasure in a long time. I was thinking you had forgotten about me."

The pair of them reassured her that this, was not the case.

She raised her eyebrow at them, but smiled all the same.

"And of course, Neji, you must remember Ten-Ten. She was the girl who pushed Hanabi in the fountain once. Quite a rough girl she was then."

Ten-Ten stood up and gave both of the men a bright super nova smile. She clasped the book to her chest, and smiled at them before saying "Neji, you look more feminine than ever."

Neji's eyebrow twitched. It had always been an insider's joke. Neji the little, pretty boy. Just because he had been prettier than her. Or so he liked to think.

"Good to see you too." he replied cooly.

Her warm honey like eyes turned to Naruto, who immediately went slightly pink.

"And you're Naruto I take it. Pleased to meet you."

She held out her hand. Naruto as was customary moved to kiss it but she quickly shook his hand and laughed at him.

Kurenai also smiled. That girl had a way with people. Men in particular.

Neji though, now he had never been attracted to her. Kurenai always had found it odd.

"Well, I'd better be going, you need to spend some time with these two I think, Kurenai-san. Thank you for lending me this book, I'm sure it will be of great help when I study for my exam."

"Don't mention it Ten-Ten, I'm always here to help."

Neji's mind was whirring.

So Ten-Ten, the gardener's daughter, was the one who the letter had been referring to. This was strange. To put it bluntly. Ten-Ten who he had grown up with...

But then again, Kurenai always had had a soft spot for Ten-Ten. He remembered she had paid for all her school fees, and sent her to a very prestigious, academic school that usually no _woman,_ would ever have gotten in to without the school being bribed.

"Neji you look as though you've seen a ghost. Come closer, and you can tell me all about how you're doing..."

The memories were fading. Neji was back in this court. Back again. Again. _No_.

The faces. So many faces. There were the policemen... The two Uchihas... Their eyes were boring into him. He could feel it as well as see it. Then there was that strange looking man... Sai... So cold, so calculating... Yet at times, during the questioning he had shown some emotion.

Then there was _him_. Naruto. A very peculiar expression on his face. The only expression Neji could not read.

Then there was _that _doctor.. Nara Shikamaru. Unbeknownst to Neji, the only person in that court, who believed strongly, that Neji, was not guilty. The person, who would save him.

**TBC.**

**AN: Ohhhh, I've always wanted to write a murder mystery :D :D This is my chance!!! =) Ahem, yes, well I hope you like it so far n_n I should actually be studying for Bio, Geo, and Spansih x( But this wouldn't leave me alone see? ^^**


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